Art brand that brings drag to classic art will inspire calendar, jigsaw and notebook range

Art licensing and design company The London Studio has announced the first licence award for its playful, funny and ever-so-slightly-subversive new brand, Art of Drag.

Independent publisher Flame Tree Publishing will produce a calendar, jigsaw and notebook inspired by this unique art brand, to be distributed globally by Flame Tree and its distributors, including Simon & Schuster for the USA.

Art of Drag takes inspiration from famous artworks and cultural female icons which The London Studio then replaces with drag artists – to stunning and memorable effect! Each original Art of Drag artwork features a beautylicious Drag Queen, created by an award-winning independent art house of LGBTQ+ artists and allies.

These works reimagine and subvert famous artworks and genres, and, like the queens themselves, every single one is a masterpiece! These beautifully illustrated reimaginings stretch from street art to the Renaissance – and everything in between.

The 2024 calendar will launch at Spring Fair, closely followed by the jigsaw and notebook. They will be on sale at independent gift shops, book shops, selected fashion retailers and gallery gift shops from winter 2023. The range will target a core market of young adults, but The London Studio expects a strong secondary market among teens and tweens, for whom drag is now very much part of mainstream British culture.

Frances Bodiam, Managing Director of Flame Tree Publishing, says: “We are so excited to be publishing Art of Drag and working with Soula at The London Studio. The artwork is gorgeous and fun and works so well with the rest of our gift and calendars programmes. They will be a truly wonderful source of inspiration for the 2024 calendar, jigsaw and Flame Tree notebook planned for later this year.”

Kirsty Guthrie from KJG Ltd who consulted for and managed this deal on behalf of The London Studio, alongside Maggy Harris from BlueSkye Licensing, comments, “I was over the moon when Flame Tree loved the Art of Drag designs I showed them. They immediately saw a fabulous product range in the offing! The ‘va va voom’ art and wonderful products combine perfectly to glam up anyone’s day – and will do just that when they launch later this year.”

Founder and director of The London Studio, Soula Zavacopoulos, adds: “Flame Tree is very well known for its incredible art licenses and the high quality of its products, so I’m very proud to announce Flame Tree as our first global licensee for Art of Drag. And there’s much more to come from this brand. The potential for Art of Drag-inspired printed products is huge. After all, who wouldn’t want a bit more glam in their daily life?”

Awareness of The London Studio and its work is growing fast. Its success in greeting cards and gifts now extends to a fast-growing list of international retailers and licensed publishers. It has also launched a number of specially created lifestyle brands appropriate for apparel, gifts, homeware, stationery and more.

The brands – Art of Drag, the well-being-themed Note to Self, the vibrant Sweet & Wild, and the funny and imaginative What Cats do When We Aren’t Looking – all enjoyed a strong response at BLE 2022. They’re already leading a busy 2023 for The London Studio’s enhanced and expanded licensing business.